Courts Rule That Suzy And Others Must Pay Compensation For Damages To Once Studio

The courts have ordered Suzy and two individuals to pay compensation for causing damages to the studio related to a government petition about YouTuber Yang Ye Won’s case.

On June 13, Judge Ban Hyo Rin of the Seoul Southern District Courts made a ruling that was partially in favor of the plaintiff, Once Picture studio’s CEO Lee, and ordered Suzy and two other individuals to pay 20 million won (approximately $16,900) in damages. The claims made against the government were dismissed.

Last May, Suzy shared a government petition that included Once Picture’s name on her social media account to bring more attention to Yang Ye Won’s case. However, it turned out that the studio had no relation to Yang Ye Won and the studio stated, “Though the process may not have been intentional, they hold partial responsibility for the escalation of damages” and filed a civil suit of 100 million won (approximately $84,500) against Suzy, the two people who filed the government petition, and the government.

Suzy expressed her desire to personally apologize to the studio, but the studio requested that she speak to their lawyer, and Suzy posted her apology to social media. In the fourth date for pleadings that was held last month, Suzy’s legal representative stated, “Though we do feel a moral responsibility, mediation and compensation are completely different things. We believe this will become a precedent to limiting celebrities’ freedom of expression. We find it difficult to provide financial compensation.”

The case involving Yang Ye Won began with the YouTuber posted a video claiming that she had been sexually assaulted after applying to be a part-time fitting model three years prior. She tearfully stated that she had endured sexual harassment at the hands of 20 men at the studio, and the nude photographs she was forced to take were leaked to a pornographic website.

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